Adrian Darya 1
supertanker IMO 9116412, seized by Gibraltar in 2019 as Grace 1.
When the US Treasury sanctioned an alleged false-flag registration ring on 4 November 2026, this tanker's history was the counter-example: stripped of Panama's flag as Grace 1 in 2019, it took Iran's and its crude still reached Syria.
Last refreshed: 8 November 2026
Why did losing Panama's flag not stop Grace 1's cargo reaching Syria?
Timeline for Adrian Darya 1
US hits alleged Indian false-flag ring
Iran Conflict 2026Three seized tankers near American ports
Iran Conflict 2026Two Hormuz accounts, no published text
Iran Conflict 2026Hormuz goes dark as tankers flee
Iran Conflict 2026Marines board shadow tanker in Channel
Russia-Ukraine War 2026Background
Now named Arman 114 and still flying Iran's flag, the tanker has been in Indonesian hands since July 2023, when patrol boats detained it near Batam during an illegal ship-to-ship oil transfer. A Batam court convicted its Egyptian captain in absentia on pollution charges and ordered the ship and cargo seized. Indonesia's Attorney General's Office sold the roughly 1.2 million barrels aboard to PT Pertamina Patra Niaga in May 2026, after three failed auctions; the ship itself, anchored off Batam, drew no buyer.
As Grace 1 it sat at the centre of a 2019 standoff. Gibraltar seized it on 4 July 2019, saying it was carrying crude to Syria's Baniyas refinery in breach of EU sanctions. On 30 August 2019, after its release, the US Treasury blocked the vessel under its counter-terrorism order, saying its 2.1 million barrels would benefit the IRGC Quds Force.
The ship is the case governments meet whenever they try to stop Iranian oil through registries or seizures. Lowdown set its unforfeited 2019 cargo against the US forfeiture actions of 25 September 2026, and its flag history against Treasury's false-registration case on 4 November 2026.
The tanker outran its lost flag
On 4 November 2026 the US Treasury designated four people and ten companies in a Chandigarh-based network it accuses of selling forged flag registrations to Iran's shadow fleet. Treasury named no ships, and the voyage of Grace 1 shows why papers alone seldom stop a cargo.
Panama struck Grace 1 from its registry on 29 May 2019. Gibraltar detained it on 4 July and let it go on 15 August, once Iran gave written assurances about the destination. Renamed Adrian Darya 1 and flagged in Iran, it sailed east and reached waters off Tartus in September, after which Iran's Foreign Ministry said the oil had been unloaded. Iran's own register, not a forged one, kept the 2019 voyage going.
What happened to the Iranian tanker Grace 1?
Why did Panama remove Grace 1 from its ship registry?
Where is the tanker Grace 1 now?
Why did the US sanction the Adrian Darya 1?
Written with AI from Lowdown's published reporting. Not individually reviewed by an editor. Updated 8 November 2026. Editorial standards.